Thinium charge is a pack of gum-size outlet charging dock for your phone

Plugging into a charger is the least interesting thing you can do with a smartphone, but it’s a necessity. In some cases, depending on your usage and hardware, this has to be done multiple times a day. There are thousands of different chargers and docking stations out in the world today, and while the included power cable and charging brick is usually good enough for most people, there are occasionally situations that call for something a little more specific. Thinium Charge is one of those solutions, allowing you to dock your handset right into the outlet and use the phone while it charges.

Thinum Charge is a 1amp charger with fold out connector and outlet prongs that transforms from something not much larger than a pack of gum to a a dock for your phone. The bottom wedge will stick out as far as you need to connect the phone (MicroUSB or Lightning depending on your needs) and the dock just plugs straight into the wall. While you may find this significantly less functional if you have a phone where the MicroUSB port is reversed, like the Nexus 5, for the most part this does a decent job of retaining phone functionality while charging.

You need an outlet that is high enough for this experience to make sense, which for me included my desk and several outlets in the kitchen. If you’re not near an outlet, but would still like to use Thinium Charge to power your phone, there’s a full USB port that slides out of the left hand side of the dock in order to plug into your laptop. This is a little on the awkward side to use, but if you’re in a situation where all you have is this dock it is better than nothing.

The use case for something like Thinium Charge is relatively small, but immensely more useful than just a regular power cable when you are in those situations. It’s pocketable, works well with most phones, and generally speaking just does exactly what it claims to do. The $50 asking price is a little on the steep side for a charger, but if your find yourself in the kitchen or in an office environment where a chest-high outlet is accessible, this is a great accessory to have.